I’m going to start this party quickly – with a self-deprecating jab. I am a music snob. No, no, not as much as Trevor is, but a music snob nonetheless. So, when Fiona Apple came large on her first album, I wasn’t convinced. When I saw what she did in her infamous “crack party” music video, I was less convinced then ever, and when I heard rumors (I haven’t substantiated them) that she throws hizzies and refuses to perform live gigs frequently, well, my degree of convincification dropped to an all-time low. Then, one morning, while randomly searching through the depths of NPR’s on-line chest-o-delights, I found numerous commentaries on Apple's new album, Extraordinary Machine. This is the best one.I am humbled.
I will never, ever, be able to do as good a job describing this album as it warrents - but I can say that if you took a professional opera star of the highest caliber, taught her to sing and write the blues, big-band, and jazz, gave her a 21st Century mentality, and then produced an album with her that had a distinct hip-hop flavor running along all its exquisite edges, twists, and turns, well, that's Extraordinary Machine. Check out the tunes they've thrown up on NPR (the whole nine yards are available for each piece). You'll download them to your desktop. You'll find yourself trying to learn the lyrics almost instantaneously. And then, well, if you're like me (and by golly I hope you are) you'll make for your nearest record shop, buy the album, and start asking about nearby concert dates. Because Fiona Apple does not warrent underestimation.
1 comment:
Ok. So I realize that I'm the only person who comments on your blog -- and thereby am not an accurate representation of the feelings and/or opinions of all your readers. That said, I have to disagree with your "music snob" appraisal of Extraordinary Machine.
As a longtime fan and supporter of Fiona (I was not one of those who dismissed her earlier releases for whatever reason -- including crack-room music videos), I have to say that Extraordinary Machine is not her best work.
I've had the bootlegged album for several months now, and recently purchased the retail version so as to make a fair comparison. The two are not the same, but the end result is the same. The music is inventive; her vocal range and stylings are unique; and the lyrical content remains as original as any songwriter alive. But EM is still outclassed by When The Pawn...
I'm glad that you love the Fiona now. But make sure to go back to those previously dismissed albums. EM is good. But don't let it define your Fiona experience for you.
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